Sophie dragged the last of the grocery bags into the kitchen and set her hands on the counter, leaning against it until she caught her breath. Cooking for the four of them was no problem, but gathering enough food for the entire Gardner clan was a bigger challenge. Since their parents had retired and moved to a small condo near Lake Michigan, Joanie had taken over hosting the family holidays. But due to little Abbie’s arrival, it was up to Sophie to plan and prepare most of the food for Thanksgiving. Mom Gardner would bring desserts, and their brother and his wife usually brought snacks, but Sophie would cook the main course and several side dishes.
Joanie and Dave had left for the morning with the kids to visit Dave’s parents. With everyone out of the house, Sophie had decided it was the perfect time to get the shopping done. Unfortunately it seemed the rest of Zutphen had had the same idea. Shopping had taken twice as long as it should have.
Before she left for the store, she’d cleared out a large space in the refrigerator. She’d found all sorts of half-eaten leftovers that she’d thrown away to make room for the twenty-pound turkey. Now she just had to wrestle the monstrous bird into the space she’d created.
She’d propped open the refrigerator door and reached for the turkey when her phone rang. Sighing, she closed the door and checked her phone. The display showed an unfamiliar number. Was it a telemarketer? She debated a moment then decided to answer. If it was a poll or something she didn’t want to participate in, she could always hang up.
“Hi, Sophie.” Mitch. Why does my tummy do somersaults whenever I hear his voice?
“Hi, Mitch. What’s up?” Did my voice just squeak? I probably sound like a teenager.
“I’m really sorry to bug you about this, but Angie was adamant she needed you.”
“Angie? Is she all right? What happened?” Something in Mitch’s voice raised the hairs on her neck, and she gripped the phone tightly.
“She’s fine. She just wants your help decorating her room. My mother is coming down from Muskegon on Monday to get the house ready for our family Thanksgiving, but for her own room, Angie would rather have your help. She says your taste is more like hers. If you can’t, I understand. I know you’ve got the pageant and everything…”
Is this just an excuse to get me there? Maybe he can’t tell me what’s really wrong because he doesn’t want to talk about it in front of Angie. “I’d love to help. Does she want to have her room done before Thanksgiving?”
“Well, only if you’ve got time. I told her you’ve got work and writing to do.”
“I don’t have to work at the rink until this evening. And I can do the writing any time. Is Angie available today? I can come over and make some plans with her and maybe we can get some shopping done this afternoon.”
“Aw, Sophie, you’re a lifesaver. When will you be here?”
“I’ve got to put groceries away and then I’ll be right over.” Yep, something is up. He sounds way too relieved about me coming.
They disconnected and Sophie returned to taking care of the food. For some reason the huge turkey didn’t seem as heavy as it had a few minutes earlier. She made quick work of putting away the groceries. Mitch and Angie needed her, and she had no intention of letting them down.
~~~~
Mitch met Sophie at the door. He pulled her into the mudroom and leaned toward her. Sophie’s heart began to race, but then she noted his bloodshot eyes and the disheveled state of his hair and clothes. He spoke in a low voice, and she listened intently.
“Listen, Sophie, I want you to know something before you talk to Angie. I got a call from the school secretary yesterday. Some strange man came and tried to take Angie out of school.”
Sophie’s hand went to her mouth and she stifled her gasp. “Oh, no. Who would do something like that?”
“Some lowlife who’s working for someone else. Fortunately the school has a policy that they won’t release a child to anyone unless the parents have signed permission for that person to take them. The secretary didn’t recognize the man so she asked him for his name and said she’d have to check Angie’s permission forms. When she went to look them up, he left. But she saw his car pulling out of the parking lot and reported his license number to the police. Then she called me.”
Sophie’s mind spun. If anything happened to Angie, she didn’t think she could bear it. “Kathy Sikkema is a sharp lady. She’s Pastor Sikkema’s wife. Thank goodness she prevented him from taking her! Have they found the man yet?”
“They have, since Kathy got a good look at the car and got the license number. But he hasn’t said anything yet about why he tried to take her or who he’s working for. Whoever paid him might try again. I’m going to keep a close eye on her until we find out. I’d like to keep her home from school, but that would only scare her. The principal has assigned an extra teacher’s aide to her classroom and she and the teacher will keep a close eye on her at all times.”
“Maybe it would be better if I don’t take her shopping,” Sophie suggested.
“I’d feel better if you both stayed here, but she’s getting pretty antsy. I haven’t let her out of my sight since yesterday. I even had a campout with her in my office last night just so I’d have an excuse to keep her with me all night.” He sighed. “I don’t want Angie to know what’s going on, but I think she’s starting to suspect something’s wrong. If you go anywhere, could you stick to the local shops instead of going to the mall?”
Not for the first time, Sophie’s heart warmed at Mitch’s obvious love for his daughter. “Of course. And I can text you every once in awhile to let you know where we are and that everything’s okay.”
“Thanks. And maybe—”
“Miss Sophie! I’m so glad you can help me. Daddy said you might be too busy, but I knew you’d come. Look what I found.” Angie stood at the entrance of the mudroom. Sophie and Mitch glanced at each other, wondering how much the girl had heard, but her sunny chatter continued as she turned and raced to her room. Sophie removed her boots and followed the unusually animated little girl. She remembered being that excited about company when she was younger.
“Daddy had all these pictures in a box, and he said I could have them. I thought you could help me hang them up. Do you think they’ll look nice on my walls?”
Sophie looked at the piles of photos fanned out on the white bedspread. There were several pictures of Angie with her father, and some of Angie with an older couple she assumed to be her grandparents. They were in a canoe, Grandma in the front, Grandpa in the back, and Angie, wearing a bright orange life vest. The rugged man in the picture reminded her of Mitch.
Angie confirmed her suspicions. “That’s me with Grandma and Grandpa Carson. They took me camping last summer.” She gestured to the next pile, which had formal studio portraits. In one, Angie sat in a tailored dress with a well-dressed couple. “This is me with Grandma and Grandpa — I mean Nana and Poppy.” A third pile contained publicity shots of Sarah Lester, the television personality. Why would Angie have so many pictures of a television news anchor?
The answer hit her like a punch to the gut. Sarah Lester was Angie’s mother.
The resemblance was there, now that she thought about it. Sarah definitely resembled the woman in the studio portrait. And Angie had the same blonde hair and blue eyes shining with intelligence. Mitch was married to a television news anchor. What on earth would he see in a plain country girl like me? Good thing I’ve got plans to leave. But somehow, those plans didn’t seem so exciting right now.
“These are great pictures, sweetie. We should get some frames for them so we can hang them on your walls.”
“Can we get white frames so they match my room?”
“Sure, we can do that. What else would you like? Sophie looked around the girl’s room and spotted her dolls sitting on the floor in a neat row against the wall. “Maybe we could get a special shelf for some of your dolls? And a little rocking chair?” When Angie nodded in agreement she pulled her notebook out of her pocket and started scribbling down their ideas.
She didn’t notice the voices in the next room until one rose to a screech.
“You can’t be serious about raising my granddaughter in this — this hovel!”
Sophie looked up to see Angie’s excitement had disappeared, replaced by a look of wariness.
“Nana’s here. And she’s mad at Daddy again.”
Sophie wasn’t sure what to do. Angie certainly didn’t sound happy at the prospect of seeing the person. Should she leave? Or should she and Angie hide in the bedroom and hope the woman went away?
“Nana? Is that your grandma?” Angie nodded. Not one ounce of pleasure lit the girl’s face. “Were you expecting her to come?”
“I don’t think so. Daddy woulda told me. And I woulda dressed up, ‘cause Nana doesn’t like me to wear jeans. She says girls should always dress like girls.”
Mitch’s voice responded at a much lower volume. She had to give him credit — if someone had come into her house unexpectedly and begun screaming insults, she probably wouldn’t have remained so calm.
“Do you want to change now? I’ll help you.”
“I guess so.” Angie tightened her lips and slid off the bed. She chose a navy wool dress with a white collar that reminded Sophie of a school uniform. Together, they got Angie into the dress and completed the outfit with tights and patent leather shoes. Sophie arranged Angie’s hair in a French plait with a pretty bow she’d found in a drawer. The little girl took a deep breath before stepping out into the kitchen. Sophie followed, keeping her hand on Angie’s shoulder in a show of support.
The two people in the kitchen were silent, but the animosity between them burned like a furnace. Sophie tightened her hold on Angie’s shoulder. The woman Sophie had seen in the studio portrait in Angie’s room stood near the back door, dressed and coiffed as if she was about to head to a board meeting. Mitch leaned against the kitchen counter, his arms crossed. Whatever their argument had been about, neither opponent looked ready to give an inch.
The woman broke eye contact first, and her gaze went to Angie. “Good afternoon, Angela. You’re looking lovely today.”
Sophie thought she caught an attempt at a smile, but the shape of the perfectly painted lips looked more like a grimace.
“Good afternoon, Nana,” Angie answered politely.
“I trust you are doing well,” the woman continued.
“Yes, Nana.”
Sophie couldn’t believe her eyes. Nana never made a move to hug or kiss Angie. She tried to imagine her own mother having that kind of stilted conversation with Joey or her brother’s children. No, Joyce Gardner never left any doubt about her feelings for any of her grandchildren.
“Your father and I are discussing plans for the holidays. He has informed me your plans don’t include a visit to our home.”
Angie glanced at her dad, but she remained silent.
“I’ve decided since you can’t be bothered to come to Chicago, we’ll just have to come and spend the holiday with you. Geoffrey and I will stay in Grand Rapids. I’m assuming that’s the closest place with decent hotels. I shall be back.” She swept out the door without another word.
Sophie, Mitch, and Angie stood frozen for several moments until Angie broke the silence. “Daddy, does that mean Nana and Poppy are coming while Grandma and Grandpa are here?”
Mitch held his head in his hands. “Dear Lord, help me,” he murmured.